Ninpou Sentai Shinobiranger
by selocon
Summary: six ninjas descended from the original six warriors must defeat the demons and keep them from bring the world down, but can they find faith in their prince and each other to do it?
1. Enter! Blazing Fire!

Lesson 1: Enter, Blazing Fire!

A beetle-like demon rampages through the city, his four arms throwing people and things around. He charges at a building, impacting it and causing it to shutter violently and look like it could collapse. He turns away in time to be struck by a flying boulder, a mini tornado, a ball of darkness, leaves flying at high speeds, and four lightning strikes.

Five teens stand in rubble in front of the demon, the one in the center holding his right hand with the first two fingers pointing at the demon. "Far enough Beet demon!" He shouts, making his right hand into a fist like the others, and turning it so his Shinobi brace is pointing to the sky. "Ready! Shinobi spirits! Wild Lightning! Rumbling Earth! Spreading Darkness! Soaring Skies! Piercing Forest!" They shouted in unison, holding the wrist with the brace in the air, as their suits materialize, followed by their spirit leaping and forming the helmet.

"Striking from below! Rumbling Earth! Otoru Nima!" "Unseen in the shadows! Spreading Darkness! Tozu Yamito!" "Striking wildly! Wild Lightning! Prince Hitoru Taku!" "Striking from above! Soaring Skies! Oshiro Zuno!" "Piercing the canopy! Piercing Forest! Ueda Akina!"

"We are…" Taku said, as everyone struck poses. "Ninpou Sentai Shinobiranger!" The camera flashes to show the various aspects of the suits; on the chest of blue, yellow, black, and pink there are six circles, with a center one of the ranger color, the same rangers have gauntlets with their ranger color and a silver stripe going around it. White's suit was different, with silver armor on the shoulders, and spikes coming off his gauntlets.

"Let's show you our skills!" Taku said, as the five rushed forward. "Nima, get a pillar supporting that building!" He shouted as he engaged the enemy, watching the yellow ranger nod and move towards the building. "Lightning ninpou! Lightning burst!" He leapt forward, and kicked at the demon, lightning striking it from the sky. "Ouji!" Yamito shouted, rushing up behind Taku as he was surrounded by a purple mist, which soon pulled all five rangers together, and unleashed massive surges of energy upon them.

As he five fell to their knees, defeated, a voice calls out "back away from them! Fire ninpou! Blaze ball!" The new male created a ball of fire in his right hand and threw it at the demon, who growled and disappeared in a purple light, as the ball of fire dissipates. Running up to them, the guy asks "are you guys okay?!"

After a few moments, Taku rises to a standing position, staring at where the demon was. "Yes, thank you, now, come with us." The other four slowly get to their feet, Zuno grabbing the new guy's arm, and Akina helping Yamito, whose leg is bleeding heavily.

At the dojo, in the main room, there is a darkly stained high backed chair against one wall, with white cushioning on it, along the wall to the right of it, are six columns, which have colored pillows on them, each holding a crystal sphere. "This place is cool!" The new guy says, as Taku takes a seat in the chair, snapping his fingers twice as everyone looked towards the door in the wall opposite where they came in, and Taku mumbles something.

He gets up and walks through the saloon-style doors, and a minute later walks out holding a piece of paper. "Sensei will be back late tonight, he's out visiting his daughter, but has anyone given Toshi permission to leave, because he's not here." Taku said, holding up the paper. "Who's this Toshi guy?" The new guy asked, and he looked at Taku, "he's my advisor and caretaker, who has pretty much agreed to take care of all of us." He said, walking over to the center of the room, and sliding back the floor boards to reveal a device which rose up out of the floor, on it was a single shinobi brace, but it looked as though it had held six at one point.

"This is your shinobi brace, it allows you to harness your ninpou and your shinobi spirit and transform into an elite shinobi." Taku said, handing it to the new guy. "What's your name?" "Razu, Kaito Razu." He said, putting the brace on, and it blinked red momentarily.

"Anyway, we need to get to training, you are obviously far behind, and with Sensei gone we are gonna have a day of just training the basics, so it is as good a day as any for you to join us." Zuno said, pushing Razu in front of him as the six made their way into the next room, which had various sections obviously designated for different forms of training. Against the back wall was a smaller chair, similar to the big one in the main room, but looked like it was moved around a lot.

The six began a simple six way sparring match, Razu easily getting beaten every time he tried to fight one of them. "You're not very well trained, are you?" Yamito asked, sliding under a punch from Zuno, and knocking him back with a sweeping kick to the legs. "I only just found out I had ninpou yesterday!" Razu said, using his right leg to launch himself from a crouch at Zuno, getting knocked away with a punch to the chest.

"I've got this, Ouji." Zuno said to Taku, moving in front of him, until he gets hit to the right by Taku who just says. "You're in the way, Zuno." He crossed his hands, fingers curled into claws, in front of his chest, grabbing Razu's fists as he came charging, he then uncrossed his hands, causing Razu to be launched into the air, spinning. "Ouji…that was awesome!" Nima said, running up to his side. Yamito nodded, as Razu landed hard on the hardwood floor. "When you know the basics, simple moves, combined together, can become your best weapon." Taku said, turning to look at Yamito. "Yamito, teach him the basics, everyone else, feel free to practice your best moves." He turns and follows Zuno to another part of the room as they began a spar with their ninpou skills, Zuno's sky ninpou proving a challenge for Taku.

After what seemed like forever, the six of them exit the training room, the five who were there previously seemingly normal, but Razu groaned in pain, sore from training. "You guys do this every day?" He asked, looking at Taku as he took his seat in the high-backed chair. "Most days, yes, if Sensei gives us a day off, we usually go out." Taku said, raising an eyebrow and leaning forward as a door is heard opening. "Probably Toshi, I hope." Everyone looks towards the entryway, as an older man, possibly in his late 20s, walks in carrying several shopping bags.

"Sorry, Ouji, I had to get some things for supper tonight, I heard about there possibly being a new arrival, and decided to stock up, besides, we were out of apples." Toshi said, pulling one out of a bag and tossing it to Taku, who rolled his eyes, and bit into it. "Anyway, I'll get dinner started, there was some commotion outside, I think a demon was running around." That spurred all six rangers into action, as they ran outside and the Beet demon throws a rock at them.

"Ready?!" Taku asked, as the six rangers got into formation. "Ready!" the other five sounded off. "Shinobi Spirits!" They said in unison as each called out their element. "Wild Lightning!" "Rumbling Earth!" "Spreading Darkness!" "Soaring Skies!" "Blazing Fire!" "Piercing Forest!"

They punch towards the sky as they transform, the final shot of their spirits forming the helmets being shown. "Striking from below! Rumbling Earth! Otoru Nima!" "Unseen in the shadows! Spreading Darkness! Tozu Yamito!" "Striking wildly! Wild Lightning! Prince Hitoru Taku!" "Striking from above! Soaring Skies! Oshiro Zuno!" "Blazing a trail! Blazing Fire! Kaito Razu!" "Piercing the canopy! Piercing Forest! Ueda Akina!"

"We are…" The whole team strikes poses. "Ninpou Sentai Shinobiranger!" As they break the pose, Taku strikes a fighting stance. "Let's show you our skills!" He says before the six charge forward, Zuno engaging the demon first while the others work on foot soldiers. "Sky ninpou! Eagle Slash!" He slashes his hands across in an X, and the demon takes damage, before Akina leaps over him. "Forest Ninpou! Leaf storm!" Leaves swarm around as the demon is forced to back away. As the leaves vanish, Yamito appears, "Darkness Ninpou! Dark Prison!" The light fades away as the area immediately around the demon goes dark and he gets trapped. Out of that darkness, Nima appears, leaping into the air and kicking rocks. "Earth Ninpou! Rock barrage!"

Razu is shown heading for the darkness, but is stopped by Taku. "You aren't ready, it's my turn!" He charged for the darkness, "Lightning Ninpou! Lightning ball!" He threw the ball as it exploded within the darkness, fading it before the demon explodes.

"That was cool, now what, do we go home?" Razu asks, before the six rangers regroup, Taku shaking his head. "No, now comes the big boy, get ready!" They back up as the monster returns at giant size, the original five holding their right hands in the air as the colored crystal spheres from the house materialize. "Shinobi henge!" They shouted in unison as they grow to giant size, transforming into robotic animals that were their spirits.

Razu held his hand up, and the sphere appeared, but unlike the others, his was clear, but after a moment it turned bright red. "Shinobi henge!" he called out, as he transformed, then froze up. Zuno flies right for the demon, clipping it with his wings. Taku pounced forward, biting the demon, before he gets thrown off. After the five regroup, Nima looks towards Taku. "I think we should form Shinobi Griffin, Ouji." She said, before he shakes his head. "No, now we go for an even greater transformation!" He said, as the five, minus Razu, called out, "Shinobi Gattai! Dai Shinobi!"

Taku, still as the white tiger, leaps into the air, the arms and legs folding up, Zuno, as Blue Eagle, folds his wings up as his beak opens and a hand slides down, as the blue eagle slides into place on the left arm. Yamito and Akina, Black Bison and Pink Fox respectively, fold up and become the legs. Nima, as Yellow Rhino, separated and became chest and waist armor. The five appeared in the cockpit, marveling at it. "Whoa we can control it together instead of just sharing consciousness." They look to the right, as if expecting Razu to appear. "Can we hold the combination without him?" Zuno asked, before Taku nods. "Yes, but we won't be as strong…Lets go anyway, he obviously ain't gonna join us." The tiger head flipped down and the jaws open to reveal the Robo head.

"Dai Shinobi, ready!" they charge forward, attacking the best they can, as the battle drags on over an hour before they finally defeat the demon again. Landing back on the ground in their civilian forms, Taku falls to his knees, having taken a bad hit to his chest, which is bloody, as the five others rush over to him, Yamito and Zuno helping him up.

"What happened, I just froze up, didn't realize you guys were doing anything." Razu said, as the six head back. "We were trying to combine together, Dai Shinobi is the combination of all our spirits, it can function without one arm, but your arm is normally the one used for defense, any damage we take as Dai Shinobi often transfers to our civilian forms." Zuno said, as they returned to the dojo. When they get there, the rangers, minus Razu, run over to an older man in his late 40s, cheering, as he handed Taku something, before asking, "Who is the new guy?"

"Kaito Razu, Blazing fire…but he isn't ready." Taku said, placing the sphere he was handed on a pillar before the older an spoke up. "What makes you say that?" Razu sighed, speaking up, "I froze up after transforming into my shinobi spirit." That elicited a chuckle from the older man. "Taku, might I remind you that you did the same thing when you first did it." Taku blushed when he was reminded of the fact, and everyone else laughed, unable to see the prince freezing up in battle.

"Hyaki!" Taku said, turning away, before speaking. "I guess we can give him some time to adjust…and besides, tomorrow will be another battle, and we all need sleep and to recover from this one." The six all go through another door as the screen fades to black.


	2. The Chosen Shinobi

Lesson 2: The Chosen Shinobi

"Fire Ninpou! Fire strike!" Hyaki shouted, flicking his wrist at Taku, while Razu watched. Taku waits until the fire has almost reached him, and rolls to the right, avoiding it. "It's a basic Ninpou, but the damage on it is high if used right." Hyaki said, using the same move to defend against an attack from Taku. "It is also good for defense."

Razu teamed up with Nima for a sparring match using some new moves he had been shown by Hyaki, matching Nima well, giving them both a challenge. Zuno and Taku look on, as Yamito and Akina spar behind them "So what is the adventure for today, besides any demon attacks, should they choose to attack today." Zuno half asked, being Second-in-Command, he was already told the plan, just asked mostly for the others benefit. "Hyaki-sensei said we could have the day off, so after morning training and breakfast, I was thinking we head into town for some fun."

About ten minutes later, the six were getting their jackets on to leave, when Taku stops and turns around, his eyes locked on the new crystal sphere he had gotten in the previous episode. Soon the six were gathered around it, before grey coloring appears in it and a Lion's roar is heard. "Sigen…" Taku whispered, an image of a robotic lion head appeared in the sphere for a split second before fading out. Razu looks surprised, and moves closer to it, but is pulled back by Nima, who shakes her head, as Taku speaks up. "Sigen will choose soon who gets to control him, I'm hoping we find out very soon, we could use the help." He left as the others hurried to follow him.

They sat around a fountain in the middle of town, eating a lunch of assorted Bento boxes they scrambled up the money for, most of it coming from Razu. "You guys are treating his like it's something special, how much do you get out?" He asked, before putting a piece of fish in his mouth. "Quite often, but we rarely eat this badly, Toshi is a health food nut." Taku said, mouth stuffed with sushi, "and besides, ever since Otou-san died, I haven't had much money." He wiped his mouth with his right sleeve, before looking at the sky. "No clouds, that could be a problem…"

After everyone finished eating, they threw away the trash, and continued walking, stopping in several stores along the way. As they were about to enter into another store, a man bumped into Taku, and after apologizing and walking off, Taku noticed the man dropped his wallet. "Sir, hang on, you dropped this!" He said, catching up to the man, and holding it out, as the man took it, Raikari, Taku's shinobi spirit, growled inside his head, sensing something was wrong.

A shot of the guy is shown as he walks away and turns down an alley, where he steps through an open door, and as he climbs down the stairs, he transforms. His new appearance is long black hair, with flecks of reds and oranges, he now has a cape appearing to be made of feathers of the same colors, his whole outfit seems to be referencing a bird and has those colors, three people come out of a side room to meet him.

The first is dressed in a cape that splits near the bottom, his color scheme is a dust grey, with some white strings for a belt. The female didn't have a cape, instead her color scheme revolved around blues and greens, appearing to be designed after a shark. The last was armored, a sword on his back was almost invisible with his bulky form, his black and grey scheme appeared to be that of a Gorilla.

"Sir!" The gorilla guy said, bowing to the guy, as the grey moth guy pulls out a crystal. "I picked this one from my personal cocoon, he should be able to take over the human world!" The guy takes it, smiling. "Motharus…I want you and Goriza to prepare the mantarins, there is a certain squad of shinobi's that are getting under my skin, we need to get them out of the picture." He throws the crystal to the ground and crushes it with his foot and steps back as the demon takes shape. "You'll do perfectly…" He mused, walking around the demon, which was designed after a Condor.

Back in the city, the six are walking back, each of them having picked of something special. Taku was gotten a white Tiger figure, and revealed he collects them. Zuno and Yamito got bracelets with their elemental Kanji on them. Nima got a book, and Akina had found another of the crystal orbs, and got it to keep it from the demons. "Ouji…I have a question." Razu said, as he rolled the orb around in his hands. "Ask then, I'm always open to answering questions." Taku replied, not missing a beat, "what is it with the orbs, why are they scattered everywhere?"

Taku stopped suddenly, causing Razu to run into his back. "Safety, if the demons get their hands on one, we are in huge trouble, these orbs contain the ancient guardian spirits of the shinobi clans. Raikari, the tiger, Azuka, the eagle, Sazuno, the Bison, Saito, the Rhino, Kisune, the fox, and Kumari, the bear. Those were the main six, who allied with our ancestors, then there were others, but over time, those orbs went missing, no explanation as to why." He explained, before they continued back, stopping again when they heard screams.

"Let's go!" Taku said, as the six ran in the direction of the attack. "Ready?!" Taku asked, as the six rangers got into formation. "Ready!" the other five sounded off. "Shinobi Spirits!" They said in unison as each called out their element. "Wild Lightning!" "Rumbling Earth!" "Spreading Darkness!" "Soaring Skies!" "Blazing Fire!" "Piercing Forest!"

They punch towards the sky as they transform, the final shot of their spirits forming the helmets being shown. "Striking from below! Rumbling Earth! Otoru Nima!" "Unseen in the shadows! Spreading Darkness! Tozu Yamito!" "Striking wildly! Wild Lightning! Prince Hitoru Taku!" "Striking from above! Soaring Skies! Oshiro Zuno!" "Blazing a trail! Blazing Fire! Kaito Razu!" "Piercing the canopy! Piercing Forest! Ueda Akina!"

The whole team struck poses "we are...Ninpou Sentai!" Taku called out, as he struck a fighting stance. "Shinobiranger!" the team choruses, charging forward. Taku jumped forward, attacking the demon first, as Mantarins swarm around him. "Lightning ninpou! Lightning claw!" He scratches the Condor demon multiple times, lightning surging through it.

Nima throws a boulder through the Mantarins, before all the rangers hear a loud roar, and Sigen's sphere, now colored yellow, appear in Nima's right hand. "Whoa, cool, Nima got chosen by Sigen!" Yamito said, throwing several Mantarins to the side. "Sigen! Lion staff!" Nima shouts, grabbing the Bo staff as it materializes, charging right for the demon as Taku takes over against the Mantarins.

After blasting the rangers with feather bombs, the demon flies away, the Mantarins falling defeated. As they demorph, Nima runs over to Taku, "Ouji…I got chosen by Sigen!" Taku nods proudly, putting an arm around Nima's shoulders. "That's great, Nima!" Taku said, and for a moment, the team doesn't look like they are fighting for the fate of the Earth.

It's less than 15 minutes before they return and Akina puts the orb on another pillar. As they settle in for another training session, Nima starts training with the Bo staff. Hyaki guides her himself, Taku looking on and nodding approvingly. "You're doing great, Nima, improving fast." He said, giving her a small smile, before turning to watch Razu struggle to defend against Yamito. "Razu! You'll never get ahead if you can't even master the basics!" He all but shouted, before walking into the main room, Razu close behind. "Ouji, why do you treat Nima different from me, no matter what she does, you never yell at her, it's always praise, but in the two weeks I've been here, there has never been a word of praise out of your mouth for me."

"Because everyone needs to be treated differently." Taku clarified, cutting Razu off. "Yamito responds best to clear and concise commands, while Akina tends to respond best to a kind tone of voice and a nudge in the right direction, Zuno is the kind that prefers to follow orders to the letter, and lives to follow them, Nima is young and naïve, she responds best to encouraging words and phrases. I had months to learn to lead them, you were just suddenly thrust upon me, with no time to get to know you before there was a fight we had to do, I don't know what you respond best to." It was obvious by his body language that it was hard for him to admit. "I don't mind how you've been doing it, but a word of praise or encouragement once in a while would be nice." Razu clarified, taking a step closer to Taku. "Alright, I'll remember that, and good job out there in the battle today."

The other 4 walk into the main room, right before there is a collective noise from their braces, alerting them to the demon attack.

"Let's go!" Taku said, the six of them rushing out and back to the center of town. As they arrived, they were immediately swarmed by Mantarins, each one transforming silently as they fought. Taku looks up and sees the Condor demon, charging for it, "lightning ninpou! Lightning burst!" He leaps into the air and kicks it, but lightning doesn't strike it, and he curses loudly.

"What's wrong, wild lightning? Can't control your ninpou?!" The demon taunts, causing Taku to clench his fist, as the others come up to him. "Shut up! Let's go! 6 Shinobi cannon!" He held his arms up, and the cannon appeared on his right shoulder. He stood behind it, with Zuno on the right, Yamito kneeling in front of him, Akina on the left, with Nima in front of her, and Razu supporting the cannon from the front on his left shoulder. "Charging!" They call out in unison, as colored lines appeared over the cannon, white being the one that wraps around the front. "Tiger burst!" Taku shouts, as Raikari materializes as a spirit and rips through the demon.

As it fades and the demon explodes, all six rangers hold their right hands up, the Shinobi orbs materializing. "Shinobi Henge!" They call out, transforming into their mechs. The four human-looking demons from earlier are shown, as Motharus snaps his fingers and moths swarm around where the demon was, returning it to life giant sized.

The six watch as the demon returns at giant size, and Taku leaps into the air as a six-way split screen shows all of the rangers in mech form as they all call out, "Shinobi Gattai! Dai Shinobi!" The sequence is shown as last time, this time, though, Razu joins the rest of the team, appearing in the far right of the cockpit. "Let's go! Dai Shinobi!" They call out, charging forward, punching the demon. After a struggling battle, the cockpit is shown, with Razu speaking up. "Let's do a wild charge, Ouji! It can call forth our spirits to attack." "And risk breaking the combination? No, but I do have an idea." Taku said, as he crossed his arms in an X, the others following his lead. "Shinobi cross!" He called out, uncrossing his arms and pushing them forward, as the others do so and Dai Shinobi copies the move as it runs forward, slashing through the demon and destroying it.

Back at the dojo, the six ranger chatter over dinner, Razu and Taku getting along better, Nima having more confidence, and Akina going silent, looking down in disappointment.


	3. Alliances Formed

Lesson 3: Alliances Formed

A shot of a woman in her early 30s is shown, she jumps down from a log at the edge of the forest, and looks at the fountain in the middle of the city, smiling. She walks slowly through the city, stopping at the door to the dojo, her hand on the door handle. "Can I help you?" She starts and turns around, coming eye-to-eye with Yamito, whose right eye is hidden behind his hair. "Oh, uh, yeah, is the prince in?" She asks, her voice giving away her apprehension. Yamito nods, and waves her along, entering the dojo and leading her to the main room. "Ouji, this lady was standing outside molesting the door." Yamito's description of her actions made the others laugh, as Taku's eyes went wide at recognizing the woman.

"Epi!" He exclaimed, getting to his feet and hugging the woman, the others surprised at his sudden showing of emotion. "Who's Epi?" Zuno asks, having never met the woman before. "Epi is another of Hyaki's students, and the nicest person ever!" Taku exclaimed, letting Epi go, "she was training here when I was little, and then left for a while, but now she's back, and this is just awesome!" He hugged her again, before their braces went off. "Let's go!"

The four high ranking demons are shown as the boss guy kicks a box to one side, growling. "WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO WIN!?" He shouts, spewing fire out of his mouth, as Goriza rushes to his side. "Maybe send down one of my soldiers?" He asks, before he's slapped in the face, and falls to the floor, his helmet flying off. "Did I tell you to speak?!" The boss guy said, giving him an angry look, as Goriza scrambled to pick up his helmet and put it on, shaking his head. "That's what I thought."

The shark-themed female ran up, holding out a cyan crystal. "I pulled this from my personal collection, sir, one of my best!" The boss took it, nodding, "thank you, Sameko, I'll send it out at once." He said, as he threw the crystal to the ground and crushed it. Taking a step back, he watches the demon rise up, and grins. "What is your name, soldier?" He asks, surveying the demon.

"Nazoka, sir, my name is Seiuki, sir!" The demon says, his speech messed up due to his walrus theme. "That powers do you have?" Nazoka asks, Sameko looking on. "I can force anyone to think everyone is out to get them, it's the perfect power!" Seiuki exclaims, clapping. "Go then, you know about the war, I'm sure, destroy our enemy so that we may finally take over the world!"

The Shinobirangers arrive in the center of the city, in fighting stances, as they look around, finding nothing, they turn to leave, only to be thrown forward by an explosion, the six landing hard on the ground, with Taku regaining his feet quickly. "Show yourself, demon!" he shouts, as the others get up slowly, as the demon rises from the fountain nearby. "Right here, shinobirangers!" He taunts, as he climbs out, firing his tusks forward. "OUJI!" Zuno calls out, shoving Taku out of the way as he's hit, and turns on Yamito, who got hit with the second one.

Taku turns and growls, noticing the demon now has three. "What did you do to them?!" He asks, charging at the demon, transforming in the process. "I just made them realize the truth, like I'm about to do to the rest of your friends!" He laughs and throws the tusks as thy hit Nima, Akina, and Razu, and soon the five are in an all-out battle. "Laters!" he says, as he throws Taku back and disappears back into the fountain, as Taku demorphs back to his civilian form, and manages to get the five back to the dojo without them getting hurt.

"I've got them separated, but you are going to be alone on this one, Taku." Hyaki says, using Taku's name and not his title. Taku slams his fist against the wall, before turning and storming out, Epi following close by, "ouji, wait, please, talk to me!" He stops and turns around, having always been unable to refuse Epi. "What's wrong, you don't normally act like this, you normally laugh in the face of defeat, fight valiantly, even when all seems lost, yet now you seem to have lost all hope, why?"

"I…I can't use my ninpou unless there are clouds, but the others are able to use theirs in any condition, it's my only weakness, they serve me without question yet all they have to do is get me outside on a clear day and I can be defeated." His face falls, and he turns away, until Epi grabs his arm. "Did you forget your father's words to you before he died?!"

_Flashback_

A four year-old Taku stands next to a younger looking Epi as Hyaki helps Taku's father sit up. "Taku, come here." The man whispers hoarsely, as the little kid walks up, "you are about to enter a battle for the fate of the Earth, you cannot lose hope, for that means losing the battle. You must remember to never give up, or the demons will win, you have to train to master everything you can, prove that you deserve the title of prince. Don't let anything stop you."

_End flashback_

Taku turns to look back at Epi, the two locking eyes for a moment. "No, I haven't, I need to train harder to get past this block, prove that I deserve the title of prince." He smiles for a moment, before running off, arriving moments later in the forest. "Lightning ninpou! Lightning ball!" He remembered what he was taught: to focus all his energy into feeling his element around him, and manipulate it. He tried that, watching as the ball materialized in his hand, and he lobbed it at a tree.

His breathing was heavy as he made his way back to the dojo later, the sun was setting in the distance, and as he looked towards it, there was a noise from his shinobi brace, alerting him to the demon attack. He runs off and arrives at the battle site, as the demon taunts him. "Hey, wild lightning, where are your friends?" He laughs, as Taku grit his teeth, remembering seeing his friends fighting each other. "You wish, demon!" He shouts, turning his wrist to the sky. "Ready! Shinobi spirit! Wild lightning!" His sequence isn't shown, and he appears after the flash of light, completely transformed. He charges forward, engaging the demon. "Lightning ninpou! Lightning claw!" He formed his fingers into claws and repeatedly scratches at the demon, lightning flowing into it.

He raise his arms for another attack, when the demon punched him in the stomach. He falls back, but gets up, and an inside-helmet shot of his face is shown, as he thinks. "I can't give up! If I give up, the world's last hope will be gone, and it will fall!" The shot fades out, and he's shown charging forward, as his battle cry merges with a Tiger and Cheetah roar. He jumps and kicks the demon, and as he lands, the sphere from the last episode appears in his hand, colored snow white, as he holds it to the sky.

"Chikaiyo! Cheetah claws!" He calls out, as the twin daggers materialize in his hands, and he charges forward. The daggers clash against the demon's arm, shooting lightning through it. He grabs the Walrus-like demon's tusks, and pulls, before slashing with his daggers again. "You aren't going to get anywhere, Wild Lightning, except with your friends!" as the demon launches its tusks, Taku leaps up, flipping over them and coming down hard, destroying the demon.

His breathing is heavy as he backs up, and Motharus is shown snapping. The demon grows, and Taku growls, holding his right hand up as Raikari's sphere appears. "Shinobi henge!" He leaps into the air as he transforms, and charges forward, and there is the call of an eagle as Zuno flies in. "Ouji! The spell was broken after the first defeat, let's form Dai Shinobi!" He calls out, as Taku nods. "Shinobi Gattai!" He calls out, leaping into the air, "Dai Shinobi!" The end of the sequence, the six appearing in the cockpit, is shown, and Taku kneels, the others following him lead, puzzled. "Ouji…there is a giant demon, shouldn't we destroy it?" Nima asked, as Taku held up a hand, silencing everyone. "Feel it…the energy around us…the elements of nature, we have to use those as a weapon." He said, springing to his feet, and Dai Shinobi is shown disappearing in a flurry of leaves, Akina's voice being heard. "Shinobi ninpou! Forest hurricane!" Dai Shinobi reappears behind the demon, punching it as Lightning courses through it. The demon stagger back, and Zuno's voice is heard. "Shinobi ninpou! Sky slash!" Dai Shinobi leaps into the air, the wings of Azuka coming out as it comes back down, slashing the demon several times.

Nima takes a couple deep breathes before she goes next. "Shinobi ninpou! Earth break!" she calls out, as Dai Shinobi disappears underground, then comes up with an upwards kick from Kisune. "My turn." Yamito whispers, as the demon staggers around as all light disappears. "Shinobi ninpou! Dark demon kick!" Dai Shinobi leaps into the air as Sazuno glows, and they come down with a hard kick to the demon, and as they flip over it, Razu's laugh is heard.

"Shinobi ninpou! Fire punch!" Kumari is punched forwards while engulfed in flames, the demon fall down momentarily. The six are shown in the cockpit, their arms crossed in an X, before the view returns to Dai Shinobi, whose arms are in the same position, as the six chorus. "Shinobi cross!" Dai Shinobi spins around as the demon explodes behind it, as it strikes a pose.

The six return to the dojo, Epi running in after them, holding up another sphere. "I found it, another one!" She said, putting it on a pillar, cocking her head to one side. "This one wasn't all that hard to find." She shrugs it off, before giving Taku a hug and heading into the next room. "Today was…eventful." Razu said, the others nodding. "That might be a bit of an understatement…" Taku began, before perking up and running into the other room, coming back out with a book. "I KNEW IT!" He shouts, pointing to the book. "Sigen and Chikaiyo can combine with Dai Shinobi, heck, all of the secondary spirits can combine with it…but does that mean they can form another giant…" His mutterings are lost of the rest of the team as they walk into the training room, leaving him to his musings.

"Cause that means that Dai Shinobi and Shinobi Griffin _aren't_ the only giants we have access to then…" He continues flipping through the pages of the book, and ends up with several books spread on the floor around him.


	4. A Step Ahead

Lesson 4: A Step Ahead

Zuno walks down the street, it's dark, and he has on a thick jacket, which he pulls around his body again, as his breath is visible in the air. He stops as he comes to the park, and a single bird call reaches his ears, and he puts his hands to his mouth and copies it. "That's so cool, Zuno!" Nima says, having been able to remain silent up until that point. Zuno jumps slightly, startled, and turns around, smiling slightly, "thanks, Nima." He says, looking at the ground, "it's something I've been working on for the festival."

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot that is in the morning!" Nima said, looking down, "everyone will expect our performances to be perfect, and I haven't practiced mine very much." She blushes, turning away, "and my family will be there…" Zuno looks away for a moment, before speaking up. "I can help you practice!" He says, and Nima nods. "Please, Zuno?" She asks as they begin to train.

Early the next morning, the two walk in, as Yamito is trying to get his hair to act right for his tribal clothing. "This isn't working…" Zuno and Nima disappear, reappearing minutes later, Nima rushing off with Akina, while Zuno and Yamito join Taku trying to help Razu get ready. "I don't even understand this whole thing!" Razu said, as Taku attempted to tie one of his gauntlets. "The Festival of Seasons was created years ago when the demons first were defeated as a sign of the unity between the clans!" Zuno said, as he attempted to stick a feather in the blue headband wrapped around his head, and frowning as it falls to the ground.

"My feather won't stay!" He says, as he goes in the kitchen to find Toshi fixing Akina's necklace. "Toshi, when you are done there, I need my feather affixed to my headband."

Across town, the demons are shown watching some Mantarins spar. "Goriza…I need one of your demons to wreak havoc on the Shinobirangers festival." Nazoka said, and the demon nodded, running off, returning moments later with an orange and brown crystal. "Orega…one of my best, sir!" Nazoka nods, and crushes the crystal and steps back as the demon rises up.

Unlike the others, this demon just makes some monkey noises, causing Nazoka to look at Goriza. "What can he do?" He asks, as Goriza smirks. "He can turn humans into smoke and trap them in bottles!" Nazoka nods, and Orega dashes out, Mantarins following.

The Shinobirangers approach a large wooden gate with the Japanese symbol for peace on it. Epi is dressed in sparkling silver outfit which everyone learn is because of her Sparkling Ice heritage. Hyaki and Toshi are dressed in simple clothing, as they are not part of any of the existing clans, but they come along to enjoy the festival.

As they enter through the gate, everyone splits up; Zuno runs over to a man in his late 50s, who smiles at him as they hug. Nima runs over to a woman who's standing with three boys and a man who seems to have the same hair color as Nima. Akina walks over to a group of girls who are talking inaudibly, and when they see her, there is a big group hug. Taku heads toward a group of people, who, upon seeing him, kneel in front of him. Yamito runs over to a guy who looks like an older version of him, and hugs him from behind.

Razu stands looking around, feeling out of place, having been raised out of the clan life. He absent-mindedly tugs at the collar of the tunic he's being forced to wear, which is 4 different shades of red. He looks up as Taku raises his hands and stands in the center of the crowd, his voice not even raised as everyone falls silent.

"Even in the midst of a battle with the demons, we have all found time to come together and enjoy a day of peace. I know everyone is eager to see how the chosen shinobi have progressed, so without further delay, I'll let the shinobi of the Soaring Sky, Zuno, go first." He said, as he returned to his clan, and Zuno took his place in the center. He put his hands to his mouth, and began making bird calls, until there were 20 different birds flying around him in various patterns. His clan cheered as he sent air currents under the birds to send them soaring into the sky, where they came together before flying off, earning another round of cheers as Zuno bowed and rejoined his clan and Nima nervously took his place.

As she was about to start, there is a 'pop' and Akina screams, where her best friend was is now a bottle of purple smoke with the girl's name on it. "Shinobi spirit! Soaring Skies! Oshiro Zuno!" Zuno shouted, leaping into the air and spotting the demon, and running in that direction once he lands. "I have this!" He shouts over his shoulder, charging the demon, who makes monkey noises at him.

As he's fighting, there is a shot of the real demon sneaking out from some bushes and silently heading for the festival. Moments later, Zuno has the demon and mantarins defeated, before he notices the demon was only a mantarin in disguise. "Oh no, that can only mean…" He turns and takes off running back to the festival, only to arrive to no demon and everyone turned to those smoke bottles.

He runs over to his clan, kneeling down and retrieving a single bottle, staring at it, before clenching his free hand in a fist. "I have to find that thing…Everyone depends on me!" He says, standing up and looking around. He hears the call of the blue jay, and smiles, having always taken courage from it.

He turns to leave and hunt the demon when a sphere appears in his free hand, and he looks at it, and nods, putting the bottle down and holding both hands out. "Jay arrow!" He shouts, holding his right arm up as the bow appeared. "Cool!" He jumps to the trees, the wind blowing past his helmet, and he nods, leaping forward and catching the wind, letting it carry him towards the demon.

He lands on his feet next to the demon, who happens to have the smoke bottles of his teammates. "Give those back! They are my friends!" He shouts, charging forward and kicking them out of the demon's hands, and he does a roll to catch them before they hit the ground. "That was close." He says as he moves them away from the battle, and turns to face the demon, holding his weapon tightly.

"One shot can beat this guy, but where to fire…" Was the only thought going through Zuno's head as he fought the demon, trying to find a weak point. Suddenly there is the call of the blue jay as he spots a weak point, backing up and taking careful aim, the beak of the blue jay on the bow glowing brightly as it opens. He fires an arrow at the demon, making it explode, and he cheers before the moths appear and the demon grows.

"Oh…right…let's hope this works!" he held his right arm up, Azuka's sphere appearing in his hand. "Shinobi henge!" he calls out, transforming into his mecha form. As he flies for the demon, there is a roar, and Taku leaps forward, tackling the demon. "Good job, Zuno, always be a step ahead of the demons!" He called, leaping into the air, as Zuno called out "Shinobi Gattai!"

The last shot of the sequence, of the tiger head flipping down and the bottom jaw opening revealing the head. Dai Shinobi stands against the demon, and as they charge forward, the demon kicks them back, and they land hard, the combination weakening. "We need a speed advantage!" Nima said, as the six sprang to their feet in the cockpit, Taku nodding. "Then I'm your guy!" He says, the combination breaking apart as he leaps out.

On the ground, he thrusts his right arm in the air, Chikaiyo's sphere appearing in his right hand. "Shinobi henge!" He shouts, transforming into the Cheetah mech. "Shinobi Gattai!" He shouts in unison with the others, a new sequence being shown like the other one, only with Chikaiyo in Raikari's place. "Dai Shinobi! Speed!" they call out, appearing in a new cockpit, this one with spots all around it. They charge forward, faster than the demon is, and punch it, but the hit seems to do nothing. "Let's try Shinobi Hurricane!" Zuno says, and Taku nods, as they stand in a circle with their fists touching, starting to run in circles.

Dai Shinobi is shown with its arms out, and it begins spinning in circles, moving right for the demon. As it moves, winds start picking up around it, and a blue energy rolls off it momentarily. The demon dodges to first attempted strike, but Dai Shinobi keeps coming, striking it multiple times and sending it flying.

It lands some feet away, and Dai Shinobi stops spinning, running towards it. "Shinobi cross!" The six call out, as Dai Shinobi strikes the demon and destroys it. The cockpit is shown as Zuno sighs with relief, before he perks up. "The festival!" He leaps out of the cockpit, returning to civilian form in the process, the others following him.

The performances of Nima, Razu, Akina, Yamito, and Taku are shown, before Zuno introduces everyone to the guy from early. "Ouji, this is my father, tou-san, this is the current prince, Taku." He said, as his father bowed to Taku, who returned the bow. "And these are my other friends, Yamito, Nima, Akina and Razu." He gestured his hand to each, who nodded as their name was said. "It is a pleasure to meet all of you."

Nima takes them over to her family, introducing everyone. "Ouji, this is my mother, father, and all three of my brothers." She said as he pointed out each one, who all bowed to Taku, who returned each bow, glancing at Yamito afterwards. "Minna, this is the current prince, and my other friends, Zuno, Yamito, Akina, and Razu." Each nodded as Nima pointed them out. "Well at least we know nee-chan is in good hands!" One of her brothers jokes as they walk off.

As Razu leads them towards the Blazing Fire clan, a man walks up to them, who Razu waves to. "Ouji, this is my father." Razu said, gesturing to his father, who doesn't bow to Taku, causing him to clear his throat. "Mr. Kato, I understand the history, and I know for centuries that your branch of the clan was raised outside of the clan life, however, when in the presence of the prince, we _bow_ here." Hyaki says, stepping out from the trees.

"Hy…Hyaki?" The older man asked, looking away before bowing to Taku. "Forgive me, Ouji, it has been a while since I fought with your father." Taku scoffed, and grabbed Razu's arm, pulling him along as Yamito took them to meet his family.


End file.
